Malacañang rejected yesterday, August 2 the proposal of Sen.
Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to let the next administration enact the Bangsamoro
Basic Law (BBL) and insisted that it should be passed within President
Aquino’s term. President Aquino’s term will end by June 30, 2016.

Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio
Coloma said people from Mindanao have long waited for a solution to the
problems caused by conflict.“The passage of the BBL should not be disrupted anymore,” Coloma said in an interview.“The President is one with the leadership of Congress in giving priority to the measure,” he added.Sen. Marcos said earlier that the Aquino administration should just
let his successor push for the passage of BBL, believing there is no
longer enough time to pass the measure.Sen. Marcos, Chairman of the Senate Local Government Committee, also said he cannot rush the drafting of his substitute bill.Coloma said those who are opposed to the measure should come up with a better alternative.“If critics of the measure disagree on some provisions, they can
discuss them in the plenary of the House and the Senate. They can
discuss ways to improve the draft law and achieve the aims of the peace
process,” Coloma said.“What is important is we push for its passage because our countrymen
have been waiting for concrete response to the decades-old problems of
poverty caused by violence in Mindanao.”Once passed by congress, the BBL will entrench the proposed
Bangsamoro new political entity that will replace the Autonomous Region
in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).Some lawmakers who are critical of the proposed billsay that it could
undermine the government’s authority over the Bangsamoro Region.